DIANE KINNEY
“ With a passion to bring light where I could
To reflect what is kind
Compassionate and good”
I have worked most of my life as a creative entrepreneur. Gaining retail experience as a young adult and when my children were mostly grown I began to pursue as a business. Following where inspiration has led. I have owned and operated two small retail shops as well as my own hand craft business. The first being a collection of fine art and crafts supporting non profits and fair trade artisans. Creating Making a Difference store in Sandpoint Idaho during the mid 90’s. After that I began to travel doing the art fair show circuit with my own Mountain Song Creations. Wood burning designs on to frames for mirrors built by my partner of salvaged and reclaimed wood. I was also beading jewelry and Swarovski Crystal sun-catchers at the time. Always with a passion to reflect light and good in the world.
In 2015 I opened a small gallery in Sandpoint continuing with Mountain Song.
I had met so many wonderful artist while doing art shows that I called on many of them to create a unique and special gift gallery. Including also my own work. It was there that I began creating my little bird luminaries. I had an idea and a dear friend shared paper scraps to play with. The bird luminaries have grown from this and continued to evolve. Always searching for new ideas and inspiration. They are a joy to create. Hope you enjoy!
YASUKO MAYHE
Celebrating Lives - From Sea Slugs to Sloths
Ever since I made an instant connection working with clay 16 years ago, I have had so much fun creating different types of beautiful creatures. It does not matter what kind of animal they are: mammals, birds, fish, or amphibians. Whenever fascinating subjects catch my attention, I have a strong urge to portray them. I then set to work on a new art project to try to celebrate a precious life and pray that it would come alive with a soul.
When I was a guest artist here at the Pottery Place Plus last year, my ceramic creatures were very well received and adopted by new owners. I am delighted to be back at my favorite art gallery to exhibit my work again. I like true-to-life images, but occasionally I get whimsical ideas. The subtitle - From Sea Slugs to Sloths explains the unpredictable range of my inspiration. You might think why sea slugs? My son is graduating with a Master’s degree in Marine Biology in June. The subjects of his thesis were sea slugs, which are amazingly colorful and lovable creatures. Why sloths? My coworkers had cute pictures of sloths taken from calendars at their work stations, and I kept looking at them every morning. One day I suddenly realized their innocent smiles were what we needed to get through this dark tunnel with Covid-19. It is hard to resist having a sloth in your house or in your office, isn’t it? So, why not sea slugs? And why not sloths?
I will also bring some raku fired pieces. Besides ceramic clay, I am experimenting with other clay media to capture the natural look for certain creatures. I like to pursue challenges in transforming hard and heavy materials to look light, warm, rough, smooth, or fragile. So, please come see my unique world of nature in ceramics. I hope some of them will speak to you and give you a smile.